IBM sees low-key adoption of AI in PHL

THE IBM Philippines, Inc. said on Thursday that many companies in the Philippines are quietly adopting  and investing in artificial intelligence (AI).

“They are very quiet adopters. What I mean is not necessarily all of them are coming out with it because they are careful, they have not measured the impacts,” Aileen Judan-Jiao, country general manager and technology leader at IBM Philippines, said at a briefing.

“They are making sure that they have really tested it before they say they are using AI,” she added.

According to a recent Ecosystem report sponsored by IBM, the initial excitement and enthusiasm in AI adoption this year has given way to companies focusing on creating “tangible value through robust infrastructure, efficient operations, and skilled talent.”

According to the study, 23% of AI investments by businesses in the Philippines next year will focus on customer experience, 18% on back-office business process automation, and 17% on employee experience and productivity.

“I’m quite optimistic because the businesses are beginning to really see where they can play, the possibilities for their own companies, but they have to try it for themselves, they are trying it already,” she told BusinessWorld in an interview.

In the Asia-Pacific, the report found that companies are going beyond experimentation and focusing more on raising return on investment (RoI) and developing long-term AI strategies.

The report found that nearly 60% of organizations anticipate raising their investment in AI within two to five years. Meanwhile, only 11% expect returns within the next two years.

It added that 36% of companies in the region are targeting innovations in services, products, and business models, 21% are seeking increased revenue, 11% are hoping for cost savings, 7% are targeting increased employee productivity, and 3% are pursuing improved customer experience.

The report found that the Philippines still experiences challenges with AI, with 43% reporting limited use cases, 40% difficulty in integration and scaling, and 37% lacking an AI strategy.

“The opportunities are almost limitless, but it requires us to rethink our strategies,” Ms. Judan-Jiao said. — Almira Louise S. Martinez